In my many years of traveling around the world, it was not until embarrassingly recently that I had ever spent the night in a hostel. This popular and economical lodging option was never on my agenda mostly because I don’t feel comfortable sleeping in the same room or sharing a restroom with strangers. When needing to pee in the middle of the night, I want my toilet to be close and empty.
This little personal issue made sixth grade camp torture.
But, while I was traveling through Northern Italy’s Florence on a Play Your Tuscany press trip, they had us scheduled for two nights at Tasso Hostel. I was a wee bit worried.
Tasso is a trendy hostel on the other side of the Arno that seems to attract the younger traveler. It is located on a non-touristy street between residential homes, restaurants and Florentine craftsmen. We entered into a small foyer that opened up into a large assembly hall. There was a stocked bar, plenty of eclectic seating choices and a small stage with a piano at the front.
I was curious as to what would be happening up on that stage. Karaoke? A Dance Off?
We were shown to the kitchen where you are welcome to store your groceries and cook meals. This room would have been handy if I wasn’t planning on overloading on homemade pasta at tiny Italian trattorias all over Florence.
The petite laundry room was my favorite aspect of hostel life. After having been on the road for a few weeks I desperately needed one.
The outdoor patio was spacious, filled with Adirondack, picnic tables and healthy plants. It looked nice enough to be the outdoor dining space at a local restaurant rather than just being at a hostel.
Maybe these two nights won’t be so bad.
I was then shown to my room which was upstairs. Please let me be the only one sleeping in there. We walked down a long, sterile hallway and the young attendant opened a door at the end. It was a small rectangle room with two army style beds, a locker and a night stand. It was the bare minimum, but all the necessities accounted for and it was clean.
And, most importantly, I didn’t have a roommate.
There were a few shared restrooms scattered in between the rooms, that were very tidy and almost always vacant. Happy about that.
I spent most of my awake time downstairs in the theater room where the free internet, new friends from around the world and really cheap wine was. Who wouldn’t?
Depending on the night, this area also turns into a gathering place for special events, music or theater plays. Unfortunately, my midlife self was in bed way before the party started, but I could vaguely hear the soiree until the wee hours of the morning.
Even though my first hostel experience was a positive one, complete conversion has not been had. I still adore my fluffy down pillows, chocolates on my bed every evening and 800 thread count pima cotton sheets. But, it is comforting to know that there is another viable option.
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How funny, I just got off the phone with my sister who is in England currently backpacking through Europe and her biggest complaint seemed to be the hostels and lack of privacy in the shower! Haha!!
Funny! I was pleasantly surprised by my experience, but I am someone who really likes my privacy.
After only staying in hostels during my travels (except when I was visiting friends who graciously hosted me), I think I may be done with hostels — there are some really good ones with respectful roommates, but some have just fit the negative stereotypes. This one, however, is one I’d happily sign up for! In my budget and looks like one of the nicest hostels I’ve ever seen.
I have definitely heard of some hostel nightmares! I’m happy that my one (& probably only) was a good experience.
Gorgeous! The hostel I stayed in was not nearly as nice. Also, I was sooo sick, I didn’t see anything BUT the hostel. Thankfully once we got to Rome our hostel owner directed me towards a clinic who gave me medicine. I have always wanted to go back to really experience it!
It sucks to be sick while traveling, especially if you are in Rome!
I can’t believe you’d never stayed in a hostel before, that’s crazy! Looks like a good place to have your first hostel experience though – could have been much, much worse.
For the record, I have stayed in some pretty crappy hotels :)
That’s so funny. :-) I have studied your whole site and I didn’t see anything about a hostel. I wanted to know what I was talking about first, but I was definitely going to ask you about this missing experience when I sent you interview questions. Guess you beat me to it. ;-)
I am sure there are plenty of other experiences that you have found that I have missed. It’s funny because on one hand I feel like I have done so much and on the other, there is so much left to do!
I just stayed at a hostel too! It was a lot of fun. Way different than staying in a hotel, but very similar to staying in a college dorm, which for me isn’t that far away, so I don’t mind. I know many other people who don’t feel like staying in a dorm once they leave, though, so I understand that it’s not everyone’s thing. But for me, I’d consider it as an option again.
I lived at home when I went to college, so I never got the dorm experience. Maybe sharing a room wouldn’t frighten me as much if that weren’t the case :)
I love also the Firenze Number Nine hotel which has a very convenient location in the city and quite low prices. Anyway Florence is a great city to discover, you can stay anywhere :)
Thank you for sharing! I’m planning a trip to Italy in early 2017 and this post has helped me start planning. Loved the pictures too!